LV union watching Calif. labor dispute

Alana Roberts

Wednesday, Oct. 8, 2003 | 10:57 a.m.

Members of the United Food & Commercial Workers Union Local 711, which represents 7,000 grocery store workers in Nevada and Utah, still have a year ahead of them before their labor contracts expire.

Yet, the outcome in the stalemate in negotiations between grocery stores in the Southern California area and UFCW Local 770 in Los Angeles could set a precedent and affect future negotiations for Local 711 in Southern Nevada.

Leaders of UFCW Local 711 in Las Vegas and UFCW Local 770 in Los Angeles say members have been affected by the arrival of Wal-Mart grocery centers and other non-union grocery stores to the Southern Nevada and Southern California areas.

The union represents more than 5,000 grocery store workers in Southern Nevada. They work at Smith's Food & Drug Centers, Food 4 Less, Albertsons, Vons and Rite Aid Pharmacies.

In Southern California, negotiations between the United Food and Commercial Workers union and three supermarket chains -- Kroger Co.'s Ralphs, Safeway Inc.'s Vons and Albertsons -- ended in a stalemate Sunday night, one hour before a contract covering over 70,000 Southern California grocery clerks expired.

Kroger owns the Smith's and Food 4 Less chains in Las Vegas.

No new contract talks were scheduled. Union members were expected to vote over three days beginning today on whether to go on strike.

Nearly 900 stores from Santa Barbara to San Diego would be affected if workers were to vote to strike, which could happen as early as Saturday.

The companies want the workers to take on a larger share of the cost for their health benefits, citing a sluggish economy, rising health care costs and increased competition from rival nonunion chains.

"As responsible companies, we are seeking nothing more than a fair contract that will help us to remain competitive in the face of soaring health care and benefit costs and increased competition from lower-cost operators," Ralphs President John Burgon said in a statement issued by the companies Monday.

Union leaders said Monday they broke off negotiations because the companies' offer, while not final, still contained unacceptable health benefit terms.

"They were unable to make an offer that was acceptable and didn't choose to do so," said Greg Denier, spokesman for the UFCW national office. "Instead, they chose to maintain an intransigent position, in particular on health care, that simply would not be acceptable to workers in Southern California."

Michael Gittings, secretary-treasurer of UFCW Local 711 in Las Vegas, attributed Kroger's move to acquire 18 Raley's stores last fall directly to Wal-Mart's influence. After Kroger took over, three of those stores were closed, while seven were converted to Smith's and another eight were converted to Food 4 Less stores. As a result, 1,400 former Raley's workers were forced to apply as new hires at Smith's or Food 4 Less stores or to find work elsewhere.

"We know that Wal-Marts are bad for Las Vegas. They hurt the economy by paying low wages and not providing health insurance and the taxpayers have to make up the difference. Somebody has to pay if they (workers) don't have insurance. They still have to get (medical care)," Gittings said.

The union has continued a campaign of protesting alleged discrimination against Wal-Mart employees who are sympathetic to the union and has worked for two years to organize workers at both Wal-Mart and Sam's Club stores in the area. Last month, the union protested at the Wal-Mart Supercenter at Eastern and Serene avenues with the help of Miss America 1992 Carolyn Sapp.

Gittings said he is unsure if the situation in California will set a precedent for negotiations in Southern Nevada next September.

"I really don't know, it's too far away. We know that the experts say that's (Wal-Mart's arrival) why they (Raley's) left the competitive market. Wal-Mart leads the way in paying low wages and no benefits and some other companies do the same thing. Wal-Mart's the biggest employer in the world. They're driving down the standard of living," Gittings said.

Wal-Mart officials say the company does offer insurance coverage to employees and it prefers to deal directly with its employees without the influence of a union.

Sarah Clark, a spokeswoman for Wal-Mart, has said about 50 percent of Wal-Mart employees are covered by the company's health plan and another 40 percent are covered by outside insurance plans.